On being super.

I recently had the opportunity to teach a lesson for the young women in my church.  It seems like whenever I teach, I'm the one that's learning.  It's all stuff that I've heard before when I was in the Young Women's program.  But it's so easy to forget the little things we learn in life isn't it?  Sometimes even the most basic stuff hits me like a wave, "Oh yeah!  I remember learning that!  Man, that totally applies to my life right now!"

The lesson was on Personal Purity and Self Discipline.  Or more, Personal Purity through Self Discipline.  Basically that we, our Spirits, are masters of our bodies, and we should be able to do whatever we set out to do, and be whoever we want to be, by conquering the weaknesses of our body.

It was a line of thought that had never occurred to me before.  

I loved this quote by Terrance D. Olson, 

"One of the false notions of our society is that we are victims of our appetites and passions.  But the truth is that the body is controlled by the spirit which inhabits it"

It goes on to point that there are a lot of easy things we can control about our bodies, such as our body movements, lifting, dancing, and bending.  The things that are harder to control are our thoughts and our appetites and our habits.  

The second quote I love was given by Richard L. Evans,

"... we can choose. ...We can break bad habits; we can acquire good habits; we can choose what we think by the sheer determination to do so"

I don't want to give you the whole lesson.  I just wanted to share the parts that hit my heart like an arrow.  I feel like I have so many goals, and so many things I want to be, and who's holding me back?  Me.  But I don't have to be discouraged by that!  Is it hard for me to wake up before 8:00am?  You betcha!  But how much more could I get done during the day if I had two extra hours?  It is something I battle with every day.  But eventually I know I'll be able to do it.  What about all the sweets I eat?  I don't think eating dessert every once in a while is really bad for you, but if I learned to manage them better I'd probably feel a whole lot better about myself.

If I learned to control my thoughts, instead of thinking, "I'll never be able to do that, they are so much better than me, look how much I fail," I could humble myself and let myself be happy with who I am, knowing that I can always be better, and it's not impossible.

I've noticed a trait that comes with many successful bloggers, business ppl, and basically people who get a lot done is their self discipline and ability to organize themselves.  It's something I struggle with, but something I know my Spirit is able to handle.  I know that we were made by a loving Father in Heaven, and that we have every capacity to become the most perfect women that we can be.  We just have to pray, try again and again, and lean on the Lord with the faith that He will make up for what we lack.

Footnote:  This lesson was provided by the Young Women Manual 1, from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  For the full lesson, go here.